Any Tips for pouring Round Balls with a ladle

[Muddy Creek Sam]

Howdy all,

I am new to casting and am using a ladle pour. Can anyone give me some tips on getting consistant Round ball pours?:confused: I am Getting Air Pockets.

Thanks,

Sam :-D

[John Boy]

Sam, the principles are the same for RB's, GG's and PP's. Give this a read:
The 8 Phase Casting Cycle ( http://www.longrangebpcr.com/8Phases.htm)
It will make you a better caster

[longbow]

I have ladle cast for about 35 years and find I have no problems at all.

Having said that, I use an open plumbers ladle (like a great big soup spoon) with a pouring lip, not a lyman type ladle.

What type of mould (single cavity, double cavity, iron, aluminum)?

Are you pre-heating the mould?

What size RB? It doesn't take a 0.735" ball mould long to heat up but a .30 cal is a different story.

Are you using an electric pot with temperature control or open pot on a hot plate?

What you might check are:

- lead temperature is hot enough
- mould is hot enough
- mould vent lines aren't plugged
- mould is clean (no oil or grease in the cavity)
- sprue plate isn't so tight it is stiff to move (I like mine to swing with barely any drag)
- if you are casting pure lead a little tin may help (add some tin or solder to the melt)

Some moulds take a while to break in. How many bullets have you cast in this one?

If you have taken care of all of the above, try smoking the mould using a wooden match or butane lighter to get a light layer of soot into the cavity then cast.

I know "hot enough" is a little vague but I don't use a thermometer, I cast by feel and base temperature on the the time it takes for the sprue to harden. If the lead hardens before I can put down my ladle and swing the sprue plate the lead and/or mould are not hot enough. I like to get the ladle down and wait a few seconds for the sprue to harden then get into a rythm.

You can get a thermometer to make sure you have the lead hot enough (It seems 700 F or better is the preferred casting temp by many here) then pre-heat your mould either by heating it gently or dipping a corner into the molten lead for a while ~ until a drop of water or spit on the outside of the blocks sizzles.

With wheelweights I usually cast slightly frosted bullets/balls which is also a temperature indicator ~ frosted is fairly hot). With pure lead you don't get the frosting.

I hope that helps a little. If not post again and I'm sure you'll get more advice.

Longbow

[Muddy Creek Sam]

Longbow,

I am casting .380 with a Lee 2 cavity Aluminum mold. Using a Saeco pot that was lwnt to me. I am using as pure a lead as I can find. These are for 2nd Gen Navy Colts. I have only cast about 300 and only about 100 were close enough to use. I smoked the mold with a candle. Haven't gotten a thermometer yet. Dipped the corner in the melt and have a semi closed top ladle.

Thanks,

Sam :D

[Southern Son]

Sam, all of Longbow's tips are spot on. But it takes experience to cast without knowing what temperature your melt is. Get a thermometer, lead can be impossible to get a good pour from if you are casting at the wrong temperature and experimenting with temerature is tricky if you don't know where to start. I started out casting for a .58 Zouarve (sorry, can't spell at the best of times). I was using an old plumber pot over a gas ring burner. I had no idea of what temperature I was casting at and I look back at some of those minnies and shudder, they were really bad. When I got my 10lb Lee bottom pour pot the thermostat kept a reasonably even temperature, but I had no idea of what that temperature was and my boolits were still shocking (some were not filled out from being too cold, some were cast way too hot and crumbled when I dropped them from the mould). Once I got a RCBS thermomiter, I saw just how important the right temperature is (I also saw just how much my Lee pot varied in temperature!!!!!).

You say "as pure a lead as you can find"? Where did you source it or what was it before you decided to make it something usefull (ie, a boolit)? If you know what is in your lead, that will help you get an idea of what temperature to cast at. As Longbow said, a bit of tin will help your boolits fill out.

As for only being able to keep 100 balls out of 300 cast, I WISH MY FIRST CASTING SESSION PRODUCED THAT MANY GOOD BOOLITS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Up untill I got the thermomiter I had a couple of occasions when I got only 30-40 .458 cal. boolits for my 45/70 out of a full day at the pot. Keep at it, the rewards for casting your own are more than just financial.

[Wayne Smith]

Casting pure requires a higher temp than casting with tin in the mix. I would guess you are not hot enough. I don't, however, know the Saco pot and it's capabilities.

[madcaster]

Cast around 750 degrees and cast often and shoot next day for maximum enjoyment!:drinks:

[Dorf]

Sam, my experience with the Lee moulds is that they require a faster casting cycle than the iron ones. If you are getting shrink holes at the sprue, try to maintain a "puddle" a bit longer (and be sure to let it harden before cutting it off !!). Cleaning a "smear" off a sprue plate is a real PITA! Don't ask me how I know! :-) Basically it is just keep your alloy hot, clean,and allowing the sprue to harden. Practice makes perfect!

[Muddy Creek Sam]

Thanks All,

Will order a thermometer and give it another go. most of the air pockets have been down in the mold. and the 100 I kept weren't all that good, wrinkle instead of air pockets. I used them in a monthly match and missed more than normal. Not sure of the source for the lead. I traded Clean WW lead for what was claimed to be dead soft.

Sam :D

[montana_charlie]

most of the air pockets have been down in the mold. and the 100 I kept weren't all that good, wrinkle instead of air pockets. I've done enough casting to have a fair understanding of tempratures, venting, and dipper handling...and I have a thermometer if needed. But, I can still get fooled by a mould that refuses to produce wrinkle-free bullets.

In every case of unexplained pockets, and wrinkles...cleaning the mould (again) solved the problem.
Sometimes it seems that you need NASA, or somebody, to help you get it clean enough...
CM

[floodgate]

Sam:

DON'T smoke the mould with a candle - leaves a greasy deposit. If you have to smoke the cavity (you really shouldn't have to with a RB mould), use a butane lighter or a wooden kitchen match.

Fg

[DLCTEX]

Clean the heck out of the mold and then run it hot. I dip the lower front corners in the melt to warm up the mold and usually get good round balls from the first cast. I have cast ball and bollits for my 2 nd. gen. Colt Navy, but find the boolits enough of a pain to load that I prefer to shoot balls. That may change now that I have a spare cyl. and am building a boolit seater to load outside the gun. I do not ladle, but it sounds as if you may need to lift the dipper off the mold and pour so as to let the air escape, but leave a puddle for shrinkage. I cast at .375 and get good accuracy, .380 will give more bearing surface, but will be harder to seat. Dale

[Willbird]

Honestly round balls are the EASIEST bullets to cast IMHO. When Dale says "clean the heck out of it" I would add "get out an old toothbrush, and some dawn dish soap, and scrub the heck out of the thing using water as hot as you can stand"

I have done just that out of desperation with molds that I cleaned with brake clean and laquer thinner and still had fillout problems with, the hot water, toothbrush, and dawn made them into a completely different mold that worked a lot nicer.

I do not smoke unless I HAVE to, and then if need be I use a butane grill lighter as another poster said. Smoking a HOT mold will give a thinner layer of soot than smoking a cold mold.

Bill

[John Boy]

Sam, casting is not like going to the deli and buying a perfectly formed ice cream bar on a stick. Between yesterday and today, did you print and read The 8-Phase Casting Cycle? It's all in there my friend.

Wrinkles are caused by mold too cold or melt too cold or both
And it was mentioned ... buy a T - H -E - R - M - O - M - E - T - E - R!
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=595204

As for the air bubbles, take a razor blade and clean each of the vent lines on the mold